Paperboy saves life of heart attack pensioner

Gareth Fleming, 15, from Newtowngrange, jumped off his bike and gave lifesaving mouth to mouth and CPR to elderly Alex Philip who had suffered a heart attack.

Incredibly, reluctant hero Gareth then calmly got back on his bike and finished his rounds, it was reported today.

He kept Alex’s blood flowing for almost ten minutes bfore staff from a nearby swimming pool used a defibrillator to start the pensioner’s heart.

Alex, who is in his late 70s, is now understood to be recovering.

Gareth said that at first he “didn’t know what to do” but fortunately for Alex, Gareth’s training as a volunteer lifeguard at his local pool soon kicked in.

He was reported as saying: “I gave the man CPR and there was a call out for an ambulance, which came after about ten minutes.”

Proud mum Heather, 45, added: “He was a wee bit shaken for a day or two – it’s not every day you do something like that. I’m very proud of him.”

Heather also revealed that relatives of Alex had been in touch to thank Gareth.